


shindigging

by Sir_Bedevere



Series: Invitations [1]
Category: Hadestown - Mitchell
Genre: F/M, Family, Gen, Humor, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, You can't choose em
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-04-14
Packaged: 2020-01-13 07:08:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18463987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sir_Bedevere/pseuds/Sir_Bedevere
Summary: Persephone is going to Pa's parties now, and she is pretty pleased to find that she ain't the one who can't hold her drink.Or, the first time she lays eyes onhim.





	shindigging

Ma saw the invitation as soon as she got in the kitchen door. It would have been kind of hard not to, on account of the fact that Persephone had put it just so on the table, and the light from the late afternoon sun shone on the gold edging. 

“What does he want?” Ma asked, kicking off her boots. Kind of a pointless question as the only things Hermes ever dropped off from Pa were invitations, but Ma was stalling for time. She was good at that. It was one of her tricks. 

Persephone put down the knife she was using to slice an apple and picked up the invitation. Fancy, heavy card. Calligraphy. Pa was going all out these days, or maybe Hera was. Persephone didn’t know who they were trying to impress with it all, but it was kind of funny. Anyone invited to one of their parties already knew what Pa was like. He wasn’t gonna change their minds with some gold on the edges. 

“Pa’s latest,” she said. “Hermes dropped it this afternoon.”

“Let me guess,” Ma went to the sink to wash her hands, pulling her sleeves up to the elbow. “Another bullshit festival he’s made up for an excuse to get everyone drunk?”

“Depends on what you think about the ‘Festival of the Wolf’,” Persephone laughed. “Don’t think I’ve ever heard of it, but you never know with the humans, right?”

“You have to give him points for creativity, I suppose.” 

“So we going?”

Ma sighed. Persephone took up her knife once more and began to chop another apple. Not so long ago the answer would have been no, but things were different now. And all it had took was Persephone threatening to marry one of the boys just to escape. Ma had believed her, especially when she left for a few days just to make her point, and now the old lady was much more willing to let Persephone have a bit of fun. 

And jokes was on Ma, because Persephone would never marry one of those boys. She loved Hermes as her brother, but Apollo was uptight and Ares was a pig, taking just after Pa. Persephone had decided long ago she’d rather be like Aunt Hestia her whole life long than give herself to any man who didn’t live up to the one she had in her head. 

“Alright,” Ma said. “We’ll go. I need to see Athena anyway. But the minute I catch you being a fool, we’re leaving.”

“Deal.”

*

Pa’s ranch was a bit of a state at the best of times, but he’d really gone all out on this made up festival of his. Wolf heads lined the path up to the door, their jaws wide open with candles burning in their mouths. 

“Tasteful,” Ma chuckled, and Persephone grinned. It wasn’t so bad a start to the night if Ma could laugh about it. They might even stay till the finger food came out this time. She hoped so, cos she was starving. This was only her second of Pa’s parties and although she had tried to be cool about it, Persephone was nervous and hadn’t eaten much all day. The family could be…a lot. A lot. Especially when they were all together. 

“Come on then,” Ma took her hand. “Let’s get this over with.”

The noise was coming from the garden behind the enormous house, so they skirted round the edges and went in through the fence. At least Pa had limited his butt ugly wolf heads to the approach. Things were much better back here, just candles and lights and a table filled with bottles and caskets. Ma caught Persephone looking.

“I’m not gonna stop you,” she said. “Just don’t be-”

“A fool, I know. See ya later.”

Hermes appeared at Persephone’s side as Ma strode off towards Athena. He pressed a cup into her hands. The contents was glowing, but Persephone knocked it back anyway and held it out for him to refill. 

“Didn’t think you’d make it,” he said. “Was starting to imagine she’d put her foot down.”

“Nah,” Persephone took his arm. “So what’s the news?”

The music was loud and the ground vibrated beneath her bare feet as Hermes led her over to a table where Aphrodite and Aunt Hestia were already sitting. He sat her down and went back towards the drink table.

“It’s baby Kore!” Aphrodite slurred. “Haven’t see you around here much, kid.”

“Not Kore now,” Aunt Hestia said. “Our girl is Persephone these days.”

“Persephone,” Aphrodite tested the name and shrugged. “Okay. I won’t remember.”

She swayed to her feet and wandered away. Even in that state, she was the most beautiful thing Persephone had ever seen.

“How are you, darling?” Aunt Hestia leaned over the table and kissed her cheek. “You look fabulous in that shade of green.”

“I’m good,” Persephone accepted the drink that Hermes brought back to her. He gave one to Aunt Hestia too, who pinched his cheek as he sat beside her. Persephone felt a warmth in her stomach at the sight of them. Her two favourite people, aside from Ma, and she was at a party with them, having a nice drink and a little talk. Things were definitely looking up since she started to stick up for herself. 

Somewhere in the background, Pa was laughing and someone else – probably Ares – was joining in. It sounded like two donkeys braying and Persephone said so, sipping her drink. 

“Now, now,” Aunt Hestia smirked. “You know how delicate your father’s pride is.”

“Don’t make it untrue.”

“But you shouldn’t always say it out loud, darling. You must remember that, if you’re to be a more common sight round these parts.”

Hermes was too busy cackling to say anything. 

The three of them talked awhile after, about not much. Persephone didn’t get much news on the farm about anything, and Hermes took great delight in sharing stories about what mischief Pa had been up to, and how Hera had punished him for it. 

“And what’s this Festival of the Wolf about?” Persephone asked. 

“Just Pa’s fancy. A couple of humans prayed a few times and burned some dead wolf they found in Pa’s name, and now it’s a festival.”

“Right.”

Aunt Hestia got to her feet, much more neat than Aphrodite had managed, and laid her hands on both their heads. 

“Right, kids. Auntie’s going to do her duty. Be good.”

She made a beeline for Hera, who was sitting by herself with a face like she sucked a lemon. At that moment, Persephone felt the back of her neck prickle and she looked around for Ma. But Ma was still deep in conversation with Athena, her back to Persephone, not looking. 

Then she saw him. A man, standing near the drinks table. He looked as though he was talking to Hephaestus, but she was sure – didn’t know how – that he’d been the one staring at her. She turned back around to find Hermes was watching him too, and he clicked his tongue. 

“Well, I’ll be damned.”

“Who’s that?” She slipped around the table and sat beside him, so she could get a better view of the stranger. “I didn’t see him here last time.”

“He don’t come up to these very much. Bit of a surprise to see him here tonight, truth be told.”

“Who is it?”

“That’s the one and only Lord of the Underworld, sister.”

“Hades?”

“Only one, didn't I say?”

Hermes was being odd, for whatever reason he had, and Persephone swirled her drink in her cup. She hadn’t had so much that she was gonna be acting the fool, but she’d never seen Hades before – the one member of the family that she didn’t know – and anyway, he’d been staring at her. So she’d stare back a bit, just so he knew she couldn’t be messed with. 

He was doing a good job of pretending that he was too busy to notice her, except for the longer she stared at him, the redder his ears got. They were glowing like hot coals by the time Hermes grabbed her arm.

“What you doing? That’s Hades. Why you staring him out?”

“He started it.”

Hermes whistled between his teeth and downed his drink, before he took her hand and dragged her away to a safer distance. His eyes were wide, and a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead from under his hat. 

“I ain’t never seen Hades even look at a woman,” he said. “Not like I just saw him lookin’ at you.”

“And I spose I should be flattered. That what you’re saying?”

“I’m saying you should be careful.”

“About what?”

“Ain’t you hearing me? I’ve never seen him lookin like that at a woman. Like – like Pa looks.”

“Oh.” Persephone looked down at her feet, and scuffed them in the dirt. Pa needed to water the grass. Or get someone to do it for him. She took a deep breath and the dying blades beneath her feet turned green, springing back to life. She wasn’t sure how she felt about what Hermes had just put in her head, other than she didn’t much care.

“I ain’t gonna even speak to him,” she assured her brother. “I got no time for the likes of him.”

Hermes was shook up, his eyes darting over her shoulder, but he nodded. He also didn’t leave her side. It should have been an irritation, but Hermes was no Ma, and as long as he was with her, Ma didn’t seem all too concerned about what she was getting up to. They made it to the finger food this time, and Persephone was shoving little sandwiches into her mouth when Hermes bristled. 

“Evening, Uncle,” he said, and Persephone turned to find herself face to face with Hades. Well, that wasn’t strictly true. He was a head taller than her, so she had to look up to meet his eye. Least he wasn’t standing too close, like Pa tended to do. She nodded and swallowed a mouthful of sandwiches. 

“Hello. I’m Persephone.”

Hades was dressed in a pair of fine trousers, a crisp shirt under a vest, and a half undone tie. He had perfectly brushed hair, just on the turn from grey to white, and a pair of the largest hands Persephone had ever seen. 

He was beautiful.

“Hades,” he rumbled, in a voice so deep Persephone felt it in her gut. “A pleasure.”

And that was it. He seemed to have no interest in saying anything else, and she had nothing to say, so she walked away. 

“You got some words out of him,” Hermes said. “Not many do.”

“It’s my charming self.”

She endured a conversation with Pa a bit later, and Hermes left her side for a while when she sat down with Aunt Hestia and Artemis, then Ma was coming to find her. Ma’s face was red – she’d been enjoying the drinking too – and she was in a good mood. 

“You ready to go home, sweet pea?”

“Sure.” Persephone was tired, and heavy from the drink, but it had been a good night. No need to spoil it by staying too long.

As she got to her feet, she spotted Hades leaning against a table in the corner, speaking to Hephaestus again. His head shot up when Ma announced to the place at large that they were leaving, and he seemed to be about to step towards them. He stumbled as he did, and Hephaestus caught his arm. Hades shook him off but went red when she saw Persephone watching him, and he turned tail, disappearing into the house.

She chuckled and shook her head. Seemed even the Lord of the Down-Below couldn’t hold his liquor. So he was just the same as the others, those eyes and that voice aside. What a shame – just when she had been willing to be generous and think that he wasn’t quite like anyone she had ever met.

**Author's Note:**

> The Hadestown version of these characters are just too much fun.


End file.
